Primordial Expanse: I have the Strongest Talent!

[Virtue's Edge]

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[C+ rank (Growth type)]

[A sword like no other. This blade was forged by Mikhail, a grandmaster swordsmith as his final work before he disappeared, never to be seen again. Forged in the heart of a Volcano, it is particularly fond of the fire element.]

[F tier effect - When combined with the fire element, the power produced with each slash will be doubled.]

[E tier effect - When wielded, the blade and its wielder gains a resistance to fire based attacks, reducing their damage by 40%. The sword will absorb residual fire energy and convert it into additional strength for the wielder's next strike.]

[D tier effect - The sword can unleash [Blazing Arc], sending a wave of searing flame outwards. The intensity and range of the arc increase depending on the user's proficiency and perception, converting the usual melee attack into a long range attack. Current attack range (20,054 metres)]

[C tier effect - Once per battle, the blade can enter a temporary state of Phoenix Rebirth, where it becomes enveloped in roaring flames, increasing its power output by 10 times for 10 seconds after the effect is activated. During this time, all attacks performed by Virtue's Edge will ignite anything the wielder considers an enemy within their preceptory range.]

***

[Calculating… Calculating…]

[Calculations finished. Results are as follows.]

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[As you have defeated and killed an enemy even stronger than the requirements stipulated, the requirements have changed.

[The requirement of killing 1 B+ rank, Variant class enemy has been completed.]

[Ding!]

[You have completed all requirements to rank up to C rank. Beginning process now.]

***

When Alex and Mira left Rothwind's smithy, there was a lot for him to unpack.

The first thing he did was take a look at Virtue's Edge, which he was positively surprised by to say the very least.

It seems that because it had been a while since he had last checked its growth, he had perhaps missed some earlier evolutions.

Or… maybe it had gone straight from F+ rank to C+ rank just from his one fight with the King of Evermoor…?

Whatever the case, it was a very welcome upgrade.

Particularly the new effects, which he was over the moon with joy to see.

From the start, he only had the F tier effect to work with, along with the sword's innate power itself.

But now, he not only had an F tier effect, but he had E, D and C tier effects to go along with it as well!

As for the effects themselves…

Alex couldn't describe the shock and joy he felt when he read the descriptions of each one of them.

In particular, the C tier effect stood out to him the most.

'Once every fight, I can activate a 10 second period where any damage I deal with Virtue's Edge will be increased by 10 times… This… this just seems absurd!'

'How does that work with my other increases? Will they stack? Or will they cancel each other out so that the highest increase is active?'

'It would be absolutely overpowered if this 10 times power increase would take effect after my 50% increase to all beings King class and below is applied…'

Just thinking about the next time he would use Virtue's Edge in battle made Alex shake with excitement.

Unless he came across another King class beast… No — even if he came across a King class beast he would have much more confidence in defeating it, as long as it wasn't any higher than him in rank of course…

But just the fact that he had so many power increases at once from Virtue's Edge's growth was more than he could have ever asked for.

Moving on, once Alex was finished marvelling over his sword, he decided to take a Variant class soul orb out of his inventory and finish off that last 3% progress towards C rank he was missing.

Unlike his evolution from D+ rank to C- rank, the rank up from C- to C rank was much more tame, like he had expected it to be.

While he did feel stronger, it was nothing like the gap he had bridged from D+ to C-.

After all, going up a tier was widely regarded as equal to two rank ups within that tier, and that was only speculated for the D tiers and below.

The real numbers for C tiers and above were probably far higher, the higher the tiers got.

Now, while he did feel like he would still struggle against the King of Evermoor, combined with the upgrades he had gotten to Virtue's Edge, he felt like he wouldn't need to launch a suicidal final attack like he did before.

But that was inconsequential compared to the last system notification he had received.

[Soul classification (Variant class) has reached 100%, beginning evolution to Variant class now.]

As soon as the system notification appeared after Alex bridged that last 1% gap in his progress towards Variant class, Alex felt a strange, unsettling sensation start to build up deep within him.

It wasn't painful — at least, not in the traditional sense — but it was overwhelming, as if every cell in his body was vibrating at a frequency that defied understanding.

Or perhaps, it would be better to say his soul itself felt like it was vibrating…

The world around him, in the luxurious inn room he and Mira had booked, started to dim, and he was forced to take a few deep breaths to steady himself.

Then, without any further warning, a torrent of energy erupted from within him.

It felt as if a dam had burst open, releasing an endless flood of raw, chaotic power.

His very essence was being torn apart and reconstructed in real time, shifting and adapting to the new classification the system had bestowed upon him.

Thanks to the fact he was sitting on a bed, he didn't fall, but he did stagger.

The sensation of having his body unravel itself and reconstruct was both terrifying and exhilarating.

Each moment seemed to stretch on for an eternity as his body, soul, and mind underwent the transformation.

And then, it happened…